Mobile messenger provider Kakao Talk’s puzzle game Ani Pang, available from its game platform has become a national pastime, with more than half of smartphone owners playing it.

According to game developer Sundaytoz and Kakao Talk Friday, downloads of the smash hit exceeded 20 million as of Thursday.

The Korea Communications Commission estimates that there are around 30 million domestic smartphone users.

The social mobile game marks an average of 10 million visitors daily, with the highest number of simultaneous players recorded at 3 million. The puzzle game can be downloaded through Kakao Talk’s game center.

“We are grateful for all the love we have received via Ani Pang,” said Kakao Talk spokeswoman Lee Su-jin. “Kakao Talk will continue to help small- and mid-sized app makers create a healthy ecosystem together.”

“The popularity of Ani Pang shows the explosive marketing capability of Kakao Talk,” said Lee Seong-ju, head of Mobile Monday’s Seoul chapter over the phone. “There have been social games in the past but none of them fared well and gained as much attention as Ani Pang.”

Lee said that the success is a boon to the game industry, which is looking to find new revenue pipelines in mobile, as well as proof of the power of free mobile messenger services.

“If you look at the app charts for games, the top five are all available through Kakao Talk. The mobile messenger can use this huge leverage to market other businesses and increase revenue,” he added.

“The success of the game is a great incentive for game developers trying to venture into various platforms launching on mobile phones and other devices,” said Nexon spokesman Lee Yung-ho. Nexon provides many games to Kakao Talk, such as Puzzle Zoo Zoo, which has marked 1 million downloads.

“Nexon has many plans to introduce new social games by helping developers see their product realized in various soon-to-be-launched platforms,” Lee added.

Ani Pang was first made available on July 30 when the messenger service launched its ambitious game platform that industry observers believe to be its first legitimate revenue pipeline.